Grilled Zucchini "Lasagna" Recipe with Italian Sausage, Tomato, and Basil Sauce

Low-Carb and Gluten-Free "Lasagna" with grilled zucchini replacing the noodles!

(Updated with new photos and better instructions, September 2012.)  This recipe is for vegetable gardeners in the northern hemisphere who might be wondering how to use one of those huge zucchinis that suddenly appear overnight. For years I've been making "lasagna" using zucchini in place of the lasagna noodles, and this is one of my favorite uses for those monster zucchinis that are inevitable if you have a garden.  Grilling the zucchini removes some of the liquid that might otherwise make the zucchini too watery, and if you don't have an outdoor grill you could certainly do this on a stove-top grill pan. Of course, using zucchini instead of pasta makes a version of lasagna that's low-carb, gluten-free, and South Beach Diet friendly, (and could easily be vegetarian without the sausage in the sauce) but it's delicious as well!

The first time I posted this I had a zucchini that wasn't very straight, so I used round slices.  That will work, but I prefer long slices if the zucchini isn't too curved.

This time I had two monster zucchini begging to be made into lasagna, so I cut up them both and used a slightly bigger pan.  It's important to make slices that aren't too thin or they won't hold up on the grill.

Brush the zucchini slices on both sides with olive oil.

It doesn't matter which way you lay them on the grill.  Grill on the first side until you have nice grill marks, about 5 minutes.

Then turn and cook 5-7 minutes on the second side, until the zucchini is done but not completely soft.

Spread the cooked zucchini out on a large cutting board and use a paper towel to press down and remove as much liquid as you can.

The whole time I was cooking the zucchini I simmered my Sausage and Basil Marinara Sauce so it would be really thick.  (If you don't want to make sauce from scratch, use your favorite sausage sauce in a jar, and simmer to thicken.)

Beat the eggs and then mix in the cottage cheese.  (Don't skip the eggs; they help hold this together.  I used more cottage cheese and one more egg this time due to the bigger pan.

Spray the dish with olive oil or non-stick spray and then make a layer of the grilled zucchini.

Cover that with half the sauce, about 1 1/2 cups of the thick sauce.

Then make a layer with half the cottage cheese mixture.

Followed by a layer with half the cheese.  (I used a low-fat Mozzarella blend from Costco that has a little bit of low-fat cheddar.)

Repeat to make another layer each of grilled zucchini, sauce, cottage cheese-egg mixture, and cheese.   

I baked mine uncovered, but you can cover with foil if it starts to look too brown.  Here's how my lasagna looked after exactly 45 minutes at 400F/200C.

And lasagna is definitely not that photogenic, but here's the original photo from 2008 when I first posted this recipe.

Grilled Zucchini "Lasagna" with Italian Sausage, Tomato, and Basil Sauce
(Makes about 8 servings, recipe created by Kalyn.)

Equipment:

It's important to use a dish that's fairly deep for this recipe.  The first time I made this I used a dish that was 9" x 11" and 3" deep.  This time I used my new lasagna pan that was 12.5" x 10" and 3" deep.  I increased the amount of cottage cheese and used one more egg in the recipe shown below for the larger size pan, but the other ingredients were the same.)

Ingredients:
2-3 large zucchini, cut into lengthwise or round slices about 5/8 inch thick (enough zucchini slices to make two layers, be careful not to cut too thin)
olive oil, for brushing lasagna slices
4 cups your favorite tomato-basil pasta sauce with sausage, simmered to reduce to 3 cups (I used my Sausage and Basil Marinara Sauce, but you can use sauce from a jar)
2 cups low-fat cottage cheese (or use 1 1/2 cups for smaller dish size)
4 eggs (or use 3 eggs for smaller dish size)
2 cups grated low-fat Mozzarella cheese
1 cup coarsely grated Romano or Parmesan cheese
(or use about 3 cups of any type of white cheese that melts well)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 400F.  Brush grill with olive oil or spray with grill spray and preheat to high heat. (You can only hold your hand there for a few seconds at that heat.) While grill heats, cut zucchini into slices about 5/8 inch thick. Brush both sides of zucchini lightly with olive oil.  Grill zucchini slices until they're lightly browned on both sides, but not fully cooked, about 5 minutes per side.  (You can do this on a stove-top grill pan if you don't have an outdoor grill.) Remove the zucchini slices to a cutting board and press lightly with a paper towel to absorb some of the moisture.

While the zucchini cooks, simmer the sauce to reduce it to about 3 cups.  Beat eggs in small bowl, then stir in cottage cheese.

Spray heavy ceramic or glass lasagna dish with non-stick spray or olive oil.  Then make a layer of lasagna slices, a layer with half the sauce, a layer with half the cottage cheese-egg mixture, and a layer with half the cheese. Top with second layer of grilled lasagna slices, sauce, cottage cheese-egg mixture, and remaining cheese.

Bake about 45 minutes, or until cheese is melted and browned on top and mixture is slightly bubbling. (I hate to cover it with foil because the cheese always sticks to the foil, but you can cover it for part of the time if you don't want the top quite so brown.) Let sit at least 10-15 minutes before cutting, then cut into pieces and serve hot.  (This will be a little juicier than regular lasagna, letting it sit for a few minutes will help with that.)

This keeps very well in the fridge for several days and it might even be better re-heated, because some of the juice absorbs into the zucchini when it's refrigerated!  I would not recommend freezing.

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South Beach Suggestions:

For anyone who's following the South Beach Diet, this dish with zucchini instead of pasta and sauce made with turkey Italian Sausage is a much better choice than regular lasagna. However, this does have a fairly generous amount of cheese, so even though this would be okay for any phase of the diet, it's probably a "once in a while" treat for Phase One.

Nutritional Information?
I chose the South Beach Diet to manage my weight partly so I wouldn't have to count calories, carbs, points, or fat grams, but if you want nutritional information for a recipe, I recommend entering the recipe into Calorie Count, which will calculate it for you.

More Versions of Lasagna Using Zucchini or Eggplant to Replace Noodles:
(Recipes from other blogs may not always be South Beach Diet friendly; check ingredients.)
Summer Squash "Lasagna" Bake from This Mama Cooks
Zucchini and Turkey Lasagna from A Good Appetite
Grilled Eggplant Lasagna from Andrea's Recipes
Want even more recipes?  I find these recipes from other blogs using Food Blog Search.

More "Use Up the Zucchini" Ideas from Kalyn:
Zucchini-Crust Vegetarian Pizza Margherita
Monster Zucchini and Basil Strata
Grilled Zucchini Pizza Slices
Meat, Tomato, and Mozzarella Stuffed Zuchini Cups   

Blogger Disclosure:

Posts may include links to my affiliate account at Amazon.com, and Kalyn's Kitchen earns a few cents on the dollar if readers purchase the items I recommend, so thanks for supporting my blog when you shop at Amazon!

This recipe was first posted for Weekend Herb Blogging, hosted by the talented Haalo of Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once .